Latif Al Ani: ‘father of Iraqi photography’ dies aged 89.
The renowned cameraman was the first to chronicle life and society during the country’s ‘golden age’.
Known by many as the “father of Iraqi photography “, Al Ani was famed for documenting daily life in Iraq during the country’s “golden age”.
At a time when Iraq was forming into a new republic, Al Ani captured daily life as a site of modernity’s contrasts: old meets new, East meets West.
The photographer from Baghdad cemented his art in the fabric of the nation when he founded the photography department at the Ministry of Education in 1960 and later became director of photography at the Iraqi News Agency.
In 2017, at the Les Rencontres d’Arles, he was selected as the winner of the Historical Book Award from a shortlist of 15.’
Latif Al-Ani passed away in Baghdad on November 19th, 2021
He is the subject of two books:
- Tamara Chalabi and Morad Montazami, Latif Al Ani, Hajte Cantz, 2017,
- Hoor Al Qasimi, Kathleen Butti and Muʼassasaẗ al-Šāriqaẗ li-l-funūn, Latif Al Ani: Through the Lens, 1953-1979, Sharjah Art Foundation, 2018
source/content : thenationalnews.com
_________
________
IRAQ